Background: Given that metformin is the most common pharmacological therapy for type 2 diabetes, understanding the function of this drug is of great importance. Hepatic metformin transporters are responsible for the pharmacologic action of metformin. However, epigenetics in genes encoding metformin transporters has not been fully elucidated. We examined the DNA methylation of these genes in the li

Western firms locating in China face a business environment that differs from their home country environment. The differences increase uncertainties and are negative for economic performance. However, firms may differ in their ability to overcome the difficulties, depending on their previous experience. In particular, firms with experience from regions similar to China might exhibit relatively bet

Hailed by economists as an idea whose time has come, the `new economic geography' has not been quite as favourably received by geographers. Frequently seen as a prime case of academic imperialism, few appear willing to concede that economists may have something to contribute to economic geography. Conversely, beyond the token reference to vintage publications, economistsoften dismiss geographers'

Projektets syfte är att generera kunskap om ledande företags konfigurering av värdesystem. Syftet kan delas in i fyra delar: 1 Analysera och utveckla definitioner för begreppen strategisk ekonomistyrning (SMA), interorganisatorisk ekonomistyrning (IOMA) och konfigurering. 2 Beskriva användningen och betydelen av strategisk ekonomistyrning och interorganisatorisk ekonomistyrning under konfigurering

The configuration of value chains and value systems is of vital importance for the long-term competitiveness and survival of companies. The focus of the study is value systems involving a leading Company. Our main question is: How do leading companies configure boundless value systems?

Educating Social Entrepreneurs: From Idea Generation to Business Plan Formulation appears at a time of unprecedented environmental disasters, natural resources depletion, and significant failure of governments and global businesses to attend to worldwide social problems. In this era of downsizing, restructuring, and social changes, notions of traditional venture creation and the ways of creating s

Non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI) is self-inflicted physical harm that is associated with suicidality, although it is not an expression of suicidal intent. NSSI behaviours range from minor skin scratching to injury requiring medical attention, and in extreme cases, death. NSSI is understood as an effort to modulate emotion in times of crisis and distress. Causal models have been developed for self-h

This paper aims at mapping the challenges of the state of the art of conventional and powder metallurgy (PM) gear manufacture in order to provide knowledge on what parameters need to be considered when modelling the cost and benefit analysis relating to sustainability. An exploratory case study was designed where a series of interviews aimed to identify the complete set of operational steps for bo

The prognosis for children with high-risk neuroblastoma is often poor and survivors can suffer from severe side effects. Predictive preclinical models and novel therapeutic strategies for high-risk disease are therefore a clinical imperative. However, conventional cancer cell line-derived xenografts can deviate substantially from patient tumors in terms of their molecular and phenotypic features.

A fundamental research experiment for thermal fluid-structure-interaction for the verification of a partitioned approach with non-linear material properties is examined. In the following, a specimen is heated as well as cooled within a wind tunnel. The thermal fluid-structure-interaction is first experimentally investigated and subsequently numerically validated. For the numerical simulation, two

'Hot super-Earths' (or 'mini-Neptunes') between one and four times Earth's size with period shorter than 100 d orbit 30-50 per cent of Sun-like stars. Their orbital configuration - measured as the period ratio distribution of adjacent planets in multiplanet systems - is a strong constraint for formation models. Here, we use N-body simulations with synthetic forces from an underlying evolving gaseo

Iridium(III)–pyridone complexes are commonly found to react in a cooperative and redox-neutral manner with dihydrogen and alcohols. In this work, the reactivity preferences of IrI–pyridone complexes were investigated under a variety of conditions. We have found that, in contrast to IrIII–pyridones, IrI–pyridone complexes display a strong preference to react non-cooperatively. With a new chelating

PURPOSE: To investigate assumed benefits of heparin coated cardiopulmonary bypass systems from standard non-coated CBP systems in unstable angina patients with preoperative heparinisation. STUDY DESIGN: Coagulation, complement, cytokine and Sonoclot parameters, were analyzed before total heparinisation prior to surgery, during cardiopulmonary bypass, after protamine to 48 hours after surgery. MATE

Background: Increased prevalence of depression is found in both type 2 diabetes (T2D) and type 1 diabetes (T1D). Melancholia and atypical depression differ by cortisol secretion and clinical features. The aim was to compare the clinical presentation of T1D and T2D patients in relation to self-reported depression, self-reported anxiety, alexithymia, obesity, and midnight salivary cortisol (MSC). Me

The Vietnamese economy has by most standards performed very well over the last decade. For instance, economic growth has averaged around 8 per cent per year during the 1990s. The high growth rate has mainly been achieved through large increases in investment, and a large share of the investment has come from foreign sources. However, it is likely that the Asian crisis will lead to a significant re

This doctoral dissertation comprises three independent essays on banking and corporate finance. The essays are preceded by an introduction to the thesis. The first essay explores whether refinancing risk is an important determinant of debt-maturity decisions. To this end, it investigates how firms with refinancing risk choose the maturity of new loans they obtain during the 2007--2009 financial cr

Stakeholder participation is considered a key principle for sustainable development in the context of natural resource and disaster risk management. Participatory modelling (PM) is an interactive and iterative process in which stakeholder involvement is supported by modelling and communication tools. Planning and decision-making for sustainable development (SD)integrate three substantive dimension